Headphones

BeatsX earphones briefly showed as in stock in select Apple Stores ahead of launch

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 6, 2017

Following a recent delay of Beats X Bluetooth earphones with Apple-designed W1 wireless chip, they briefly showed as in stock in select Apple Stores this morning suggesting either an imminent launch (not very likely) or limited availability later this week (more likely). The earbuds use a flexible cord that lets them hang around your neck when not in use. Announced at the September 2016 iPhone 7 event, the accessory sports 8-hour battery life, a Siri-compatible RemoteTalk with built-in playback controls and a Lightning port for charging.

And with Fast Fuel technology, BeatsX customers will be able to get approximately two hours of playback time with a quick five-minute charge.

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Apple updates AirPods firmware to version 3.5.1

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 1, 2017
AirPods

Apple today updated the firmware on AirPods. The company did not publish the official changelog at post time so we don't know what this new firmware update provides in terms of new features aside from bug fixes and performance improvements, but we'll make sure to update the article as soon as we find out more. The new software bumps the AirPods firmware from the initial version 3.3.1 to version 3.5.1.

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Don’t like the color of your AirPods? Have them repainted black to match your iPhone 7

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 31, 2017

Ever since AirPods made their long-expected albeit delayed debut, some Apple users—this author included—have been scratching their head over the inexplicable lack of a Jet Black edition. That's why we're thankful and excited for the BlackPods project.

Taking advantage of a proprietary three-phase coating system, BlackPods promises to give Apple's first truly wireless earphones a luxurious scratch-resistant black finish that should match any Black, Jet Black or even Space Gray iPhone perfectly.

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Which W1 chip-equipped audio device should you get?

Anthony Bouchard ∙ January 31, 2017

Because Apple nixed the 3.5mm headphone jack from the bottom of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, you either have to use the supplied Lightning dongle for backwards compatibility with your 3.5mm audio accessories, or you have to kick it up to the new age with a pair of wireless or Lightning-enabled audio devices instead.

When you don’t want to be bothered with the issue of charging your device at the same time you're listening to audio with headphones or earbuds in, the obvious choice is to go wireless. While there are tons of options, only a few come with Apple’s brand new W1 chip, which supports the slick new Bluetooth pairing process. Among those are AirPods, Beats Solo3, and Powerbeats3.

If you’re in a predicament and can’t decide between the three then you should find this piece helpful, because I'll be comparing the strengths and weaknesses of each from a variety of angles.

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NPD pegs AirPods unit share in December to 2 percent of headphone market

Christian Zibreg ∙ January 17, 2017

Market research firm Slice Intelligence recently estimated that the $159 AirPods earphones, which launched on December 13, have managed to capture one out of each four dollars spent online on wireless headphones during December 2016, beating Apple's own premium audio brand Beats which took a Slice-estimated 15.4 percent share of the wireless headphone market.

But according to NPD Group's December 2016 Weekly Retail Tracking Service data cited by CNET, Slice's data paints an incomplete picture of the wireless headphone market. According to NPD's own findings, AirPods have captured a modest two percent of the market in units and three percent in dollars.

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AirPods earned 1 out of each 4 dollars from wireless headphones sold online in December

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 13, 2017

Market research firm Slice Intelligence estimated that AirPods, Apple's $159 wireless earphones, took one out of each four dollars spent online on wireless headphones in December 2016. Launched on December 13, AirPods grabbed an estimated 26 percent share of online revenue in the wireless headphone market, beating out Apple's premium audio brand Beats which captured an estimated 15.4 percent of the market, down from 24.1 percent between the start of 2015 and December 13.

In other words, Apple has managed to capture one-fourth of the wireless headphones market since the launch of AirPods. And if you also count Beats sales, the Cupertino company took almost 40 percent of online revenue in the wireless headphone market.

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Testing the operating range of AirPods and Beats Solo3 vs non-W1 Beats headphones

Steffen Reich ∙ Updated May 7, 2018

Much has been said about the virtues of the W1 chip Apple started baking into their latest wireless Beats line-up and of course the AirPods. By now we know for sure that W1 facilitates a much faster pairing process, as do we know that the chip significantly amplifies both battery life and conservation techniques. What’s less prominently talked about - at least from official sides - is the operating range of these wireless headphones and the presumed effect the W1 chip addition has had on that benchmark.

For I felt information on the internet was just a bit too murky to count on, I decided to take it upon myself and conduct a little experiment: I packed my rucksack with four headphones (two of which boast the new W1 chip) and headed to a nearby park in order to pit them against each other. Pairing them one after another and then slowly making a bee-line for the opposite direction, one thing quickly became clear: the results for the maximum distance obtainable aren’t surprising in terms of order, but they definitely are in their clarity.

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Incipio’s OX case lets you charge your iPhone 7 and listen to music simultaneously

Anthony Bouchard ∙ January 5, 2017

Among the many things being unveiled at CES 2017, accessory maker Incipio has just unveiled a new case for both the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus called OX that has a built-in 3.5mm headphone jack in addition to a Lightning port.

The case intends to do away with the convoluted process of charging your device and listening to music at the same time even when you don’t have a pair of expensive wireless headphones to solve this problem for you.

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Gruber: AirPods might launch in time for Christmas

Christian Zibreg ∙ December 12, 2016

An authorized Apple retailer claimed today that the upcoming W1-equipped BeatsX earphones may not release in another 2-3 months. But what about AirPods? Daring Fireball's John Gruber said loosely on the latest episode of The Talk Show that AirPods, the company's first Bluetooth earphones, may arrive in time for Christmas after all, albeit in very limited quantities. You're advised to take this speculative report with a grain of salt because the sources Gruber's learned this from are not very reliable, according to the man himself.

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